Hugh N. "Little Nick" Nicol (erroneously spelled on this card as Nicholl) was a Right Fielder and Second Baseman who played 10 seasons in the majors. From 1883 through 1886, Nicol played for the St. Louis Browns of the American Association, helping the team reach the 1885 World Series where they tied the Chicago White Stockings 3-3-1. He led all major leagues with 138 steals in 1887, then followed that up with 103 the next year, and 80 the year after that. Nicol has eight different poses in the N172 set. This one - sometimes known as his "Brown's Champions" card within the set - features a portrait of the St. Louis star in his striped cap.

Centering is just a touch west and north on the canvas, but it's hard to notice as there is a lot of dead space by design on this one. While the printing is slightly overexposed on this example, "ST. LOUIS" is still clearly visible across Nicol's chest. The quality of the photograph is high enough that you can see the rosiness of his left cheek as he stares off into the distance. Rounded corners and soft edges keep this card from grading higher, but the true culprit is the back, which is stained and features paper loss which does not affect the front.